Some polymer materials can be naturally tacky, or slightly sticky. When very small tacky polymer bodies are collected together they can tend to stick together and form clusters. This tendency to cluster possesses challenges to assembly and manufacturing processes in which polymer bodies must be handled individually. Traditionally, this problem was addressed by adding a powder or lubricant to the very small polymer bodies that could reduce the tackiness of the bodies, causing them to separate. Other solutions have involved mechanically or manually separating the individual parts.
Examples of tacky polymer materials include silicone rubber, latex rubber, synthetic latex rubber, and thermoplastic elastomers (TPE). Referring to silicone rubber as a representative material, silicone rubber is a rubber-like material composed of silicone together with carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Silicone rubber can be found in a wide variety of products, including automotive applications, electronics, medical devices and implants, and more. Some of these application use silicon rubber parts, which may include the assembly and manufacture problems mentioned above.